Caught In The Crossfire

I expect all of us at the Hotel have heard conflicting opinions from different docs. And even different things from the same doc on separate occasions. And that can and does sometimes drive us a bit wacky.

But as a recovering lawyer-- one day at a time-- I think I may have always been a bit more tolerant and understanding of medical uncertainty. When analyzing legal issues, the relevant facts are rarely entirely known or certain, and they have this annoying tendency to keep changing over time as a matter progresses. The pertinent legal principles and statutes often consist of vaguely worded generalities, and their application to the facts at hand is a matter on which reasonable minds can and will differ. And when it comes to predicting how judges and juries may decide a case, a lawyer might as well be handicapping a high-stakes horse race. Given all of the unknowns of melanoma and the complexity of human anatomy, physiology and biology, how very much harder must it be for an oncologist to predict the future course of this disease and the effectiveness of any of the limited number of treatment options available to halt or slow its progression?

So, I’ve been making a concerted effort not to ask questions that call for my docs to guess. (Call it professional courtesy among two professions that aren’t the best of friends.) And next time I find myself caught in the crossfire of conflicting opinions, I’m going to try to cut oncologists some slack. But that doesn’t mean I won’t whine about it, to the tune of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s “Crossfire”…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F73EcycGCO8


Day by day night after night,
Hounded by those Black C frights
Hurry here, hustlin' there,
No one's got a life to spare
Schedule’s tight, nothin's free,
Won't somebody come and rescue me
I am stranded, caught in the crossfire
Stranded, caught in the crossfire

Truth’s obtuse, guessing is nigh,
Check your moles not to die, die, die
Beggin' for quarter, stealin' some time,
Come on can't you see that I
I am stranded, caught in the crossfire
I am stranded, caught in the crossfire

We need to share some kindness,
Some cancer empathy, because
We're stranded, caught in the crossfire

Right the wrong, help the weak,
Always turning the other cheek
Trust your maker, don't be no fool,
Forever mindful of the golden rule
We got stranded, caught in the crossfire
We got stranded, caught in the crossfire
We got stranded, caught in the crossfire
Stranded, caught in the crossfire
Help me